Antique Oval Shell Cameo of the Goddess Flora in Neo Gothic Dress Italy

This oval cameo was carved in the 2nd quarter of the 19th century out of a two layered shell. It shows a profile bust of the great German poet and writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. ...

This antique charm was created in the last quarter of the nineteenth century out of metal. The pendant is designed as a claw of a bird of prey holding a fluorite ball. The naturalist...

This Victorian unmounted Carnelian shell cameo depicting the right-facing profile of the Princess is very well carved in exquisite detail. The surface is as crisp as the day it was crafted, impressive for a shell cameo from the late Victorian era. This would date back to around the 1860s-1890s. The carving on this cameo is excellent and well-detailed, with good relief. This was carved by an excellent carver, as were most Victorian cameos. This loose cameo...

We love our wonderfully esoteric Grotesque man (or "other") crafted by a talented unknown carver in the 19th century from a chunk of the most desirable orange-red toned coral. Connoisseurs of literature or theater or the arts understand the term Grotesque as referring to fantastical, exaggerated or distorted representations, usually of the human face or figure. (The word "grotesque" originates from the Italian "grottesca", meaning of a cave" (grotto = cave in Italian) and refers to doubled, metamorphosed, or altered forms). Originally Italian, the concept of the Grotesque was used in French and German literature as well, and is a an integral part of English literature and theatre (The Theatre of the Grotesque preceded the Theatre of the Absurd) today. We find our Grotesque stickpin guy (gal) to be not grotesque at all but endearing, with his (or her) exaggerated features and droopy skin folds. And as a reference to classic theatre, this coral stickpin...